"Awaken, thing." Jas- no… Hoplite, heard a cold gravelly voice say from above him.

He was a Hoplite now. He didn't have a name, no name. Just a Hoplite. A thing. Hoplite opened his eyes, seeing Commander staring down at him with angry eyes. A bright white light that was always left on silhouetted Commander's form before Hoplite's eyes could adjust. He was a tall man, well over seven feet in height and installed with some of the most advanced bionics known to man. A Paladin, retired to train the next generation of Hoplites in the way he himself had been trained.

Hoplite had been taught to address him as Commander, as were all the other children in this bunker. His features bore deep furrows of age, marred by a severe plasma burn across half of his square face that exposed all the teeth on the left side of his jaw. He wore a one piece jumpsuit of solid black, with a matching long sleeved overcoat that seemed to drink in the surrounding light. It made his presence all the more intimidating, and along with the glow of those terrifying red bionic eyes… Commander looked like despair personified. The overhead lights shone off of Commander’s bald head, a sight that may have been funny, had Hoplite not been scared witless of the man looming over him. Even the overwhelmingly brightness that hung overhead seemed to get drunk in by Commander's dominating darkness, making Hoplite feel as if he were all alone with the monster that had lived in his closet.

Commander was feared and respected by all who crossed his path, sending even First Arm nobility fleeing with but a mere glance. A part of Hoplite’s training though, was being able to look Commander in the eye without flinching. He needed to be strong. But the looming evil figure before Hoplite sent him into a fit of terror.

Hoplite pressed his back into his cot in a vain attempt to create distance between him and Commander, but a strong hand gripped Hoplite's nose, hauling him up out of the bed and to his feet. Commander snarled, spittle flowing from his half burnt mouth and seeping between his exposed teeth as those horrible red eyes penetrated Hoplite’s very soul. After a few seconds, he released Hoplite’s nose, the tip smarting from the powerful grip of the retired Paladin.

Hoplite did his best not to cry. He knew that whatever Commander had planned for him would be so much worse if Hoplite wept… As he came to his feet, he could see the rows and rows of bunk beds lining the barracks of the Hoplites, all occupied with children that didn't even move their heads to look his way.

Hoplite knew they would be awake, but he didn't blame them for avoiding movement. One couldn't know where Commander's wrath could land next… it was best to avoid having his attention on you if you could get away with it. The white lights blazed overhead, casting Commander's and Hoplite's shadows across the hard concrete floor as Commander shoved Hoplite to the ground.

Still Hoplite didn't cry, even as his shoulder took the whole fall, exploding with agony. Something to be proud of perhaps…

"Thirty-seven! You weak runt!" Commander shouted "Did you really think you could sneak in contraband without me finding it!?”

Hoplite's breath caught "S-sir wait," He began with a terrified stutter "I-I had it with me when I got recruited…" He whispered, avoiding Commander’s gaze by instead staring at his chest.

Commander reached into his sleek black coat, pulling out a thick book from one of its pockets "I saw the bulge beneath your mattress, you thing!" Commander waved the book out in front of Hoplite as he nursed his sore shoulder "You have defied Terna and Lord Jyn himself by bringing this drivel along with you! I don't care if you somehow managed to hide it during the search, only the clothes that were on your back were to be allowed, not this!"

Hoplite read the title on the face of the novel, knowing every single word by heart from the countless times he'd read it to help cope with the horrid training he had been put through. Whenever they were given rest and no one was looking he had read it; read it to escape and remember who he really was. A book of wizards, elves and magic… his only escape from the pains of his body and the trauma of his mind.

Commander then gripped the book in both hands tightly, and Hoplite's eyes widened with shock as the Paladin tore the book in half with a curse. The sound of paper ripping beneath powerful bionic muscles echoed throughout the barracks, causing a few other children to shift slightly in their beds. Hoplite stared wide-eyed in horror at the destruction of his one escape from this place, feeling his eyes beginning to moisten. Commander didn't say anything as he stuffed the torn book back into the black pocket of his long coat.

Hoplite felt the tears beginning to slide down his cheeks… and right then, he knew he was doomed.

"A Hoplite does not weep." Commander said in a suddenly flat monotone "Give me one-thousand push-ups now. If you fail, you'll do two-thousand tomorrow, and three-thousand the day afterward if you continue to fail!" He began shouting again "Until the weakness has left your body and soul for the Octopus and for Terna!"

Hoplite wiped the tears from his eyes as he brokenly began the motions, his shoulder protesting every single movement until finally he reached forty push-ups… and collapsed, the ache of his chest and pain of his shoulder being too much to bear. Commander sneered down at him with disgust before ripping Hoplite's blanket free from his bed.

"Sleep cold, you thing." Commander said with an edge of spite "You will do two-thousand tomorrow."

"Yes… sir." Hoplite said with a groan, sitting up from the ground.

Hoplite didn't know how a seven-year-old was supposed to be capable of one-thousand push-ups, but arguing with Commander would be a good way to find out.

"Oh, you will, thing. You get your first infusions tomorrow. You will be able to do two-thousand easily after that, and if you still cannot manage it, I will put you through every kind of hell possible." Commander said in a monotone once more "Now get in that bed, before I take that damn mattress away too!" He shouted, snapping his gloved fingers.

Hoplite leapt up and crawled into the mattress, feeling the cold of the large open barracks seep into his bones as Commander stomped off with his blanket.

“You okay thirty-seven?” He heard twenty-five ask from the bunk above his.

Hoplite didn’t answer.

“He’ll get his some day…” Twenty-five said confidently “I’ll beat em’ up once I’m a grown-up.”

Twenty-five continued to speak for a while until eventually lapsing into silence. Didn’t he know that Commander could come back in at any time? What if he heard the two of them talking? Hoplite would not risk a beating. He bit his lower lip to stop it from quivering as he buried his face into the pillow. He made no sound as his tears fell, soaking the pillow casing until eventually, after several hours, they no longer fell. He couldn’t possibly fall asleep knowing that his first infusions were going to be tomorrow…

Indeed, as Hoplite predicted, he hadn't been able to get any sleep before Commander stomped back into the barracks, screaming for the 'things' to get up and get ready for the worst days of their lives…

All except for Hoplite, who had to go in for his first infusion of Final Kind DNA.